Ashley Milano  |  October 26, 2016

Category: Labor & Employment

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CA Sales Expense ReimbursementIf you are an inside salesperson, you generally expect to be properly compensated for overtime, mileage and other reimbursable expenses.

Yet some sales reps may not actually receive the proper wages for California inside salespeople, even though they legally required by the state.

For employees acting as inside salespeople for their company, California labor laws are clear on what proper wages for California inside salespeople are.

California Minimum Wage and Overtime Laws

In general, California employers must pay employees at least the minimum hourly wage, which is currently $10/hour. California employers must also pay employees overtime when they work more than a certain number of hours in a day or week:

  • time-and-a-half for any hours worked beyond eight in a workday or 40 in a workweek
  • time-and-a-half for the first eight hours of work on a seventh consecutive workday
  • double time for any hours worked beyond 12 in a workday, and
  • double time for any hours worked beyond the first eight on the seventh consecutive workday

However, these rules don’t apply to all employees. If an employee fits into an exemption, the employer doesn’t have to comply with minimum wage or overtime rules.

Specifically, for employees in sales, the two exemptions most likely to apply are for commissioned inside salespeople and outside salespeople.

Wages for California Inside Salespeople

Two California Wage Orders, issued by the California Industrial Welfare Commission, create an exemption specifically for commissioned inside salespeople. However, the exemption (sometimes called the “inside sales” exemption) is available only for employees who work in retail or the professional, technical, clerical, mechanical, and similar occupations.

Employees in these industries qualify as exempt if both of the following are true:

  • they earn at least 1.5 times the minimum wage, and
  • at least 50% of their compensation comes from commissions (earnings based on the total volume of sales of a product or service)

The California Supreme Court recently held that these minimum pay requirements apply for each pay period.

In other words, an employer may not average out an employee’s earnings over a month or year to determine whether the employee earns at least 1.5 times the minimum wage.

Instead, the employee must earn 1.5 times the minimum wage per hour in each pay period.

Taking Legal Action Over Wages for California Inside Salespeople

For inside sales representatives who currently work or have worked in California, it may be difficult to tell what your rights are when it comes to California labor laws, and even harder to demand proper wages from your employer—even if they are legally required to do so by the state.

If you have worked or currently work as an inside sales representative in California and believe your employer failed to properly compensate you according to California wage laws governing wages for California inside salespeople, you may be eligible for to file a lawsuit.

Join a Free California Sales & Piece Rate Worker Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you are a California employee who receives commission pay or gets paid on a piece-rate basis, but you have been denied additional minimum wage pay, your employment rights may have been violated.

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